American Go E-Journal

In 1982, a historic film appeared, the first ever co-produced between the Chinese and Japanese film industries. Mikan no Taikyoku, released in 1982 with English subtitles as The Go Masters, explores the impact of world events in the mid-20th century when a Chinese prodigy’s father sends him to Japan. This is NOT the 2006 Go Seigen biopic The Go Master. In fact the current release is entitled “An Unfinished Chess (sic) Game,” which is actually closer to the original title (except for the chess part.) Critics hailed the 1982 film at the time as “an Asian Gone With the Wind,” and it won first prize at The Montreal Film Festival. Then, oddly, it faded into obscurity, but at least one fan never forgot. Yellow Mountain Imports proprietor Pong Yen writes, “I saw this movie a long time ago and have always wanted to carry it . . . After some searching around I was able to find the Chinese distributor.” YMI seems to have an exclusive on the DVD, at least in English. Kudos to Pong Yen for tracking it down. It’s not HD, and the subtitles are a little dark, but if you are a go player who appreciates Asian films, you are in for a treat.- Roy Laird

Men’s & Women’s Finals Set for Sunday: The men’s final in the 2012 SportsAccord World Mind Sports Games is an all-Korea final with Kang Dongyoon 9P against Choi Chulhan 9P, while the women’s is all-Chinese, as Li He faces Rui Naiwei in the final round, which will be played at 3p (local time) on Sunday, December 16. Watch for live broadcast on Cyberoro and Michael Redmond’s game commentary on the SAWMG Channel.

Semi-Finals: Round 6 began after lunch on December 15, with the same eight players playing as in the fifth round that morning. This was the round that would decide third, fourth, and fifth places. On the top board China’s Lin Chi-han was playing Korea’s Kang Dongyoon, the winner to proceed into the men’s gold/silver medal final, the loser to take the third-place bronze medal. On the next board China’s Chen Yaoye was playing Korea’s Park Jeonghwan, the winner to finish fourth, the loser fifth. Beside them a similar fourth-fifth place playoff was set up in the women’s division, Chinese Taipei’s Joanne Missingham playing Russia’s Natalia Kovaleva. On the last board, China’s Rui Naiwei faced Korea’s Choi Jeong in the women’s medal battle. Michael Redmond gave the players their starting instructions before heading to the YouTube broadcast booth to comment on the Kang-Lin game. In other World Mind Games news, the day ended with medals for the Open and Women’s Bridge Team and Women and Men Chess Blitz competitions; details on the SAWMG site. Click here for Ranka’s full report, which includes Round 6 results. photo by Ivan Vigano

Round 4: Final Knockouts
After lunch on Friday, December 14, the players began to head for the playing room for the final games of the main men’s and women’s knockouts and six games in the repechage (loser’s) sections.The playing room was set up with the women’s games in the front row and the men’s games in back. The television cameras were trained on the game between Korea’s Park Jieun and Chinese Taipei’s Joanne Missingham in the women’s repechage. In the TV commentator’s booth just outside the playing room, Michael Redmond 9P (at left in photo) and American Go E-Journal Managing Editor — and IGS SAWMG Media Officer — Chris Garlock (right) were giving a live commentary — available on the SAWMG Channel — on this game for a worldwide audience on 54 platforms in countries from Afghanistan on down. The two players obliged them by playing at a brisk pace in the opening.For the second straight day China’s unbeaten Chen Yaoye found himself facing a Korean opponent. Today it was Choi Chulhan, also unbeaten in the World Mind Games. Click here for Ranka’s full report, which includes Round 4 results. photo by Ivan Vigano

Interview with Bill Lin: Canada’s Bill (Tianyu) Lin was one of the first four players to be eliminated, losing to China’s Jiang Weijie in round 1 and Chinese Taipei’s Lin Chun-yen in round 2. Lin was born in Ningbo, a city south of Shanghai and his family emigrated to Vancouver when he was ten. “My father had been crazy about go in his university days, and there was a go board in the house,” Lin says. “I became very interested in playing five-in-a-row, and then I started playing go. An amateur 5-dan named Fan Jiunling had a go school that I attended twice a week for four and a half years until we emigrated. By then I was an amateur 3 dan in China.” Click here to read James Davies’ complete interview on Ranka. photo: Bill Lin (right) playing against Jiang Weijie; photo by Ivan Vigano

This is a critical game because whoever loses will be knocked out; this is a double-elimination tournament and both players have one loss.

Joanne Missingham, born in Australia,lived in California for a few years and now represents Taipei; she’s also the official Go Ambassador at the SAWMG.

Park Jieun was one of the first Korean female players to really challenge Rui Naiwei when Rui was playing in Korea. So she’s been one of the top Korean players for quite a while now, and she’d be favored to win this match.

A brand new go server — go9dan.com — is launching with a bang, with ten of the world’s top professionals set to play for $100,000 in prizes in the World Go League Invitational. Also, in order to encourage the American Go Association’s new pro system, Lee Sedol will play a ten-game series against the two new U.S. professionals, Andy Liu and Gansheng Shi.

The new browser-based online go platform “aims to bring global go enthusiasts of all skill levels together,” Michael Simon tells the E-Journal. Simon is CFO and Head of English Activities for 82 Limited, an online game company based in Hong Kong and San Francisco that’s operating the new server, which is set to launch its beta version on Sunday, December 16 (at 00:01 PST, 03:01 EST).

“I’m sure a lot of American players and enthusiasts are going to be excited to watch this series,” says American Go Association President Andy Okun, “I know I am. We’re very grateful to go9dan and Lee Sedol for arranging such a cool contest.”

The league will run from the end of January to April, and includes Lee Sedol, Lee Changho, Kong Jie, Xie He, Chen Yaoye, Park Junghwan, Kim Jisuk, Park Younghoon and Shi Yue. The 10-game series between Lee Sedol and the new American professionals will run one game per week beginning in January; if the U.S. team is at black or better at the end of the series, they will win $1,000 apiece.

The new server’s features include the ability to observe and play multiple games, a teaching game auction, rated and unrated tournaments, and the opportunity to play against professional world go champions. There will be no need to download a client in order to play, and no limit to the number of players allowed on the server.

Beta launch will be in English and Korean on December 16, with full launch in Chinese and Japanese added on January 20. Members who sign up early will be eligible for events and promotions, including free memberships and virtual currency.

Top finishers at the upcoming North American Go Convention will earn Korean Baduk Association (KBA) certificates signed by Lee Chang-ho 9P and Cho Hunhyun 9P, which come with a handy wallet-sized KBA rank card. Myungwan Kim 9P has arranged for the certificates in coordination with the KBA.

The N.A. Go Convention Feb. 8-17, 2013 takes place in both Parsippany NJ and Washington DC and will have nine open divisions ranging from 20+k to 6+d. The Convention also features a Blitz Go and Pair Go tournaments. Three professional players will play simul games and give lectures and game reviews. Click here to see the full schedule of the 9-day convention and to register. Pre-register by 12/25/2012; rates will rise 10% after Christmas, and 20% after 1/15/2013.Photo: Myungwan Kim 9P with the KBA 1-dan certificate awarded to Donald Allison at the 1st Young Kwon National Online Tournament.

Go Baron Title Match 2012: The Go Baron Title Match, played from 12/07-09 in Praha, Czech Republic, was won by Ondrej Silt 6d and second was Jan Hora 6d… Finale XXXIII Campionato Italiano 2012: The Finale XXXIII Campionato Italiano, played 12/08 in Firenze, Italy, was won by Francesco Marigo 4d and in second was Carlo Metta 3d (left)… Edinburgh Christmas 2012: The Edinburgh Christmas, played on 12/08 in Edinburgh, United Kingdom, was won by David Lee 3d, second was Andrew Simons 3d and third was Piotr Wisthal 1d… Swiss Winter Go Camp League 2012: The Swiss Winter Go Camp League 2012, played from 12/06-09 in Montbovon, Switzerland, was won by Oriol Ardevol 2k, second was Albert Ardevol 1k and third was Semi Lee 3d… Final Campeonato Espana 2012: The Final Campeonato Espana, played from 12/06-09 in Barcelona, Spain, was won by Oscar Anguila 4d, second was Albert Sanchez 2d and in third was Pau Carles 3d… Braunschweiger NiKo-Turnier 2012: The Braunschweiger NiKo-Turnier, played from 12/08-09 in Braunschweig, Germany, was won by Matlon Welter 4d, second was Jonas Welticke 4d and third was Bernd Sambale 2d… Campionatul National de GO Tineret 2012 (under 25): The Campionatul National de GO Tineret 2012 (under 25), played from 12/08-09 in Cluj, Romania, was won by Mihai Valentin Serban 5d (right), second was Laura Avram 2d and third was Darius Dobranis 2k… Cluj- City Championship 2012: The Cluj- City Championship 2012, played from 12/08-09 in Cluj, Romania, was won by Sergiu Burzo 2d, second was George Ghetu 3d and third was Adrian Nedan 3k… Austrian Female Championship 2012: The Austrian Female Championship, played on 12/08 in Wien, Austria, was won by Katrin Unger 5k, second was Chuandi Zhou 7k and third was Lisa Mayer 10k… Berliner Nikolaus-Turnier 2012: The Berliner Nikolaus-Turnier, played on 12/08 in Berlin, Germany, was won by Young-Sik Choi 2d, second was Robert Gurisch 1k and third was Kari Koehler 5k (photo: Ulrike Schmidt, 6th place)… 3 Turniej Dyrektora IVLO 2012: The 3 Turniej Dyrektora IVLO, played 12/08 in Bydgoszcz, Poland, was won by Piotr Walczak 8k, second was Piotr Chojnacki 12k and third was Dawid Libront 8k… David 2012: The David 2012, played from 12/08-09 in Firenze, Italy, was won by Alessandro Pace 2d, second was Aberto Zingoni 2k and third was Angelo Grazzini 5k… 6th Nam-Ban Cup 2012: The 6th Nam-Ban Cup 2012, played from 11/30-12/01 in Madrid, Spain, was won by Kiichi Matsumoto 1k, second was Fernando Holgado 3k and third was Antonio Sanmartin 9k… PromoGo Children`s Handicap 2012: The PromoGo Children`s Handicap, played on 12/08 in Praha, Czech Republic, was won by Dusan Jansky 14k, second was Dita Vasovas 15k and third was Jan Praus 16k… Romanian Cup Final side open Sc 179 2012: The Romanian Cup Final side open Sc 179, played on 12/02 in Bucuresti, Romania, was won by Bianca Dadavi 9k, second was Sebatian State 11k and third was Mircea Nitu 12k… Romanian Cup Final side open CSRB 2012: The Romanian Cup Final side open CSRB, played on 12/01 in Bucuresti, Romania, was won by Dragos Minjina 12k, second was Paul Ciot 13k and third was Fridih Grabovski 14k… Romanian Cup Final 2012: The Romanian Cup Final, played from 12/01-02 in Bucuresti, Romania, was won by Lucretiu Calota 5d (right), second was Constantin Ghioc 5d and third was Liviu Oprisan 4d… Trofeo Milano 2012 – Nona Tappa: The Trofeo Milano 2012 – Nona Tappa, played on 12/01 in Milano, Italy, was won by Stefano Cavalieri 5k, second was Nicoletta Corradi 3k and third was Ivano Taldo 7k.- adapted fromEuroGoTV, which includes winner reports, crosstabs, game records and photos. Edited by Taylor Litteral

“I have every issue of Go World except the newest one,” writes Debbie Siemon. “I learned go in 1982 when I was 25 and was addicted right away. I used to lay out my Go Worlds on the rug in our condo and look at the colorful artistic covers (yes I was really in love with the game) When Tim and I read The Go Burglar by William Pinckard in the autumn 1986 issue (GW 45) we loved it and often quoted the theme when talking to other new or old go players. We could relate to the idea of being so immersed in the game that really nothing else mattered. You could burn the carpet or tell a burglar to sit down and make himself at home. When I saw the ‘Favorite Go World Story Contest’ (“My Favorite Go World Story” Contest Announced 11/26 EJ), I thought of that story immediately. Then I was happy to see that issue 45 is available as a sample from the American Go Foundation. I am sure all go players will enjoy the article. I have always loved getting my Go Worlds in the mail or at the Congress. I will miss it. I am glad we still have our E-Journal to catch up on our daily go news.”

FJ and Smallbird will battle for the title of “KGS Meijin” in a best-of-three final December 15-17 on KGS. Each month this year KGS has run a tournament for dan players that resulted in 16 contenders who played off in two semi-finals in November, which FJ and Smallbird won. The finals will be played on KGS at 8AM GMT on December 15, 16, and 17; the winner will win the 2012 “KGS Meijin” title and get a $500 prize, while the runner up receives $100.

A professional exhibition match between new American professional go player Andy Liu 1P and Chinese pro Chang Hao 9P highlights the 2013 American Collegiate Go Association’s Spring Go Expo. “We’re really excited to host a large go community-wide event for the first time,” says Michael Fodera 5d, one of the event’s organizers, “and we have lots in store for attendees, including workshops and simuls with professional players as well as lectures and presentations.” The March 23-24 event will be held at Harvard and MIT campuses in Boston, MA. Aimed at both go players and the general public, the Expo will emphasize the importance of cross-cultural education and collaboration, especially as applied to go and its future in America. Organizers include Fodera, Brian Lee 1d, Jasmine Yan 4d, and the co-directors of The Surrounding Game, Will Lockhart 5d and Cole Pruitt 1d, who will present a preview of the first feature-length documentary on go during the Expo. Other Expo attendees include Liu Siming, president of the Chinese Bureau of Games, and Ing Minghao, the president of the Ing Chang-Ki Weiqi Education Association, a philanthropic organization dedicated to worldwide go education, a legacy of business magnate Ing Chang-Ki. The Expo is open free of charge to the general public, and students K-12 and university are especially encouraged to attend. The American Collegiate Go Association is dedicated to promoting go to students as a means for education; travel and accommodation subsidies are available; email acga.organizers@gmail.com for details or to RSVP.

Round 2: The Elimination RoundRound 2 of the SportAccord World Mind Games began at 9:30 a.m. on December 12. Outside, the ground was still covered with snow, but the temperature was pleasantly warm within the playing venue at the Beijing International Convention Center. All 16 men were competing, eight in the main section, eight in the repechage, or loser’s bracket; as this is a double-elimination tournament, four of these players would be out after this round. Eight of the 12 women were competing, including the four seeded players who had byes in the first round and the four who had won their first-round games. In the men’s division, two games promised to be particularly noteworthy. One was the match between China’s Jiang Weijie (left, in photo at right) and Korea’s Kang Dongyoon (right); click here to download the game record, which includes detailed commentary by Michael Redmond 9P. Jiang’s triumphs so far this year have included the LG Cup, the Dachongjiu Cup, and the China-Japan-Korea Mingren-Meijin-Myung-in playoff. Kang won the men’s individual event at the 2008 World Mind Sports Games in Beijing, the 2009 Fujitsu Cup, and the 2009 Korean Chunwon title. The other particularly noteworthy game was the match between Czechia’s Jan Hora (left, in photo at left) and Hungary’s Csaba Mero (right) in the repechage section. The winner of that game would advance to the third round and at least double his monetary prize. In the women’s division, the two Chinese players were playing the two Japanese, and the two Koreans were playing the two from Chinese Taipei. In the men’s repechage section, Russia’s Ilya Shikshin, Argentina’s Fernando Aguilar, and Canada’s Tianyu (Bill) Lin faced tough matches against China’s Tuo Jiaxi and Chinese Taipei’s Lin Chi-han and Lin Chun-yen; for the losers of these games, the tournament would be over. Click here for Ranka’s full report.

Round 3: Then There Were 24
Round 3 started at 3:00 p.m. on December 12th, with twelve men and all twelve women competing. In the undefeated men’s section, China’s Chen Yaoye was matched against Korea’s Park Jeonghwan, and Koreans Choi Chulhan and Kang Dongyoon were matched against each other. In the undefeated women’s section, China’s Rui Naiwei was matched against Korea’s Park Jieun, a player who had occasionally managed to defeat her in title matches when Rui was playing professionally in Korea, and China’s Li He was matched against Korea’s teenaged Myung-in Choi Jeong. Most players took their seats early. Rui Naiwei and Choi Jeong spent the pre-game minutes meditating with closed eyes.In the repechage sections, the eight players who survived to advance into the fourth round were: Lin Chi-han of Chinese Taipei, who eliminated Csaba Mero of Hungary (‘His reading was too fast for me to keep up with,’ commented Mero); Lin Chun-yen (above at left) of Chinese Taipei, who surprisingly eliminated Tuo Jiaxi of China, setting up a match between the two remaining Lin’s in the fourth round, ensuring that at least one player from Chinese Taipei will reach the fifth round; Jiang Weijie of China, who eliminated Murakawa Daisuke of Japan by winning a fight in the middle of the board; Fujita Akihiko of Japan, who eliminated countrymate Uchida Shuhei; Mukai Chiaki of Japan, who eliminated Su Sheng-fang of Chinese Taipei; Joanne Missingham of Chinese Taipei, who stormed back from her morning loss to eliminate Okuda Aya of Japan; Natalia Kovaleva of Russia, who eliminated Irene Sha of Canada in a long fighting game that ended with no groups dead but many groups reduced to just two eyes and Kovaleva slightly ahead; and Vanessa Wong of Great Britain, who eliminated Rita Pocsai of Hungary, whom she had also beaten in the European Women’s Championship this year. Click here for Ranka’s full report.

Park is one of the top Korean players; he’s been on the international scene for several years. He’s a steady player with no obvious weak points. Chen’s also a top player from China; he’s very knowledgeable about some of the more complicated josekis so his opening can sometimes be quite interesting. On the whole, I think he’s a strong fighting player, and we certainly will see that in this game.